DISCOVERIES OF THE ENGLISH. . %5B 
seek or allow others to pry into so awful a mys- 
tery. 
Our author now proceeds to Nackway, which 
seems to be near the present situation of Pisania, 
and where he was appointed to inspect the beha- 
viour of a Portuguese servant employed by the 
Company. Here he remarks, that the behaviour 
of the natives by no means corresponded to the un- 
favourable reports spread of those who inhabited 
the upper parts of the Gambia. As he passed 
through their towns, most of the inhabitants came 
and shook hands with him, and only the women who 
had never before seen a white man, ran away and 
hid themselves. He mentions, however, some sin- 
gular customs that prevailed. It seems, that what- 
ever a man buys may be reclaimed in the course 
of the day, on the price being returned. This cus- 
tom sometimes affords a handle for extortion against 
those Europeans who are not aware of its existence. 
A gentleman having bought a cow, happened soon 
after to cut off the tail. This coming to the ears 
of the seller, he immediately came, and, on some 
plausible pretext, requested its restoration. The 
animal being produced, he immediately exclaimed 
against the mutilation it had suffered, and demand- 
ed, as a compensation, three hundred times the 
price originally paid. The gentleman remonstrat- 
ed against a claim so manifestly unjust ; but, 
findingjiis opponent seconded by the whole popu- 
